Even though trade magazines, newspapers, and books can be fantastic resources for keeping up with market trends and business happenings—it takes a bit of effort to track them down or find the time to sit down and read through an issue. It might be more time-efficient and convenient to consider joining list serves or subscribing to e-mail newsletters. This way, the updated information is delivered right to your e-mail inbox and is in a form that is usually easy to read and to glean the most current information from.
Various print publication and online web resources offer individuals the opportunity to sign up in order to receive an online publication or newsletter. There are also online list-serve communities where an individual can sign up to participate in discussions regarding specific topics. You can find topics and information on just about any interest, business, or trade—and can find mentors, informative articles, and discussions about all sorts of topics that likely pertain to your home business.
The great things about having the notices and newsletters delivered to your e-mail inbox, is that you can read them at your leisure, delete the information or save it if you need to, and no paper to mess with, books to shelve or return to the library, and the information is usually more current than that found in print publications. It also is easy to share information and forward things to other people who might also be interested or involved with your business.
The not-so-great thing about subscribing to list-serves and e-mail newsletters is that it can fill up your e-mail inbox with e-mail that you have a hard time getting around to reading. Most of these online “publishers” are good about not contributing to too much e-mail or spam, but it can get overwhelming if you subscribe to several. Fortunately, it is much easier to just delete e-mail than to deal with pounds of unwanted paper or mail.
See Also: Help! Building a Business Library at Home and Don’t Forget About the Library as a Business Resource